An unknown assailant has shot and killed a rare yellow deer being kept in the Khoramabad Zoo. The head of Iran's Environment and Wildlife Watch reported on August 24 that the deer died from a shot to its shoulder despite efforts by zoo officials to save it.

Iranian yellow deer

The Mehr News Agency reports that Keyvan Hooshmand said the deer was male and had been left in the care of the Khoramabad Zoo since last year by the Lorestan Department of the Environment.

The assailant and the motives for the deer's shooting have not been identified so far.

This is the second time in recent months that a deer in a protected area has been killed by unknown assailants.

In December, another yellow deer was shot and killed in the Pardisan National Park, a protected area and animal sanctuary. The incident was condemned by the head of the Department of the Environment, Massoumeh Ebtekar.

Dama Mesopotamia is a rare species of the deer family. It is highly endangered and on the red list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.